Hot runner systems are becoming more compact and economical. The nozzles are being designed to have smaller mass and higher watt density. The heating elements and manifolds are also becoming smaller and more compact.
Temperature controllers typically used in connection with hot runner systems are designed to have a single PCB card dedicated to one zone, wherein a zone relates to one thermocouple and its corresponding heating element. Accordingly, a six zone system would require six single zone controller cards. The controller cards are often housed in a single controller box. A typical six zone controller box is about 350 mm×150 mm×500 mm, wherein each single zone controller card has dimensions of about 100 mm×120 mm×50 mm.
With the reduction in size of many of the other components in a hot runner system, it would be desirable to reduce the size of the controller. In providing a more compact temperature controller, it would be advantageous if the compact temperature controller is designed to operate with smaller tips or nozzles, is easy to operate, and is economical to produce.